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Everyday tennis enthusiasts are being offered an opportunity to earn A$1m when they face world-class athletes - including top-ranked Carlos Alcaraz - in a single-point showdown before the Australian Grand Slam

Tournament officials of the Melbourne major have announced the Million Dollar One Point Slam, which will pit a dozen non-professionals against top-ranked players in a knockout tournament at the tournament grounds

How the Event Will Work

Competitors are set to play 'the classic hand game' to establish who gets to serve or return, and whoever wins the point will progress to the subsequent phase

The victor of the event will take home £490,000

For comparison, players who made it to the final four of the men's or women's singles in the previous year's tournament won over a million Australian dollars

Earlier Comparable Tournaments

The US Open organized a revamped, separate combined gender tournament in late summer which encouraged top singles players to compete, with the victors receiving one million US dollars

The Melbourne tournament held its first-ever One Point Slam this year, but the total purse was a smaller amount and it had limited exposure

One top competitor was the only top-10 player involved, and his campaign finished when he put the single service opportunity granted failing to clear the net in his last eight match

Competition Details

Planners have not detailed exactly how the event will operate, but it is projected to mirror a comparable structure to this year's edition

The top competitors will be permitted to have a single serve and the non-professionals on two occasions - as is the usual procedure in traditional tennis

While it is not certain how the bracket will work, there will be several competitive phases and the location will be the main stadium rather than the secondary venue

The final stages will occur in a night session instead of 1pm local time

Participation Information

Any Australians - or overseas competitors who have enrolled with the national federation - can enter 'single-point competition' competitions at their neighborhood facilities

The victors of the community events will then go into a random pairing, with one amateur player from every geographic division picked to participate in the 'championship round' in a evening match on Wednesday, 14 January

There will also be a entry tournament in the final month which everyday players, lower ranked pros, well-known figures and sport stars can enter

It starts on the starting date and the two winners will qualify for Wednesday's 'championship match' with the additional everyday players and 10 professionals

"Regardless of your skill level, the ultimate winner will receive the reward. Entries will open soon at clubs across the country"

Event organizers stated there were "further celebrities to be unveiled imminently", while the event portal indicated "famous personalities" would be participating